tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post1932982524749073155..comments2019-03-21T13:07:57.730-07:00Comments on Blaine's Puzzle Blog: NPR Sunday Puzzle (Nov 1, 2015): And Three Nines are TwentyBlainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06379274325110866036noreply@blogger.comBlogger213125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-80639903138588721032015-11-20T14:24:53.862-08:002015-11-20T14:24:53.862-08:00May I toss in my tuppence worth about the Loyd puz...May I toss in my tuppence worth about the Loyd puzzle? The decimal point is neither a sign nor a symbol, and sqrt [SQR or the caret symbol indicating square root] implies an exponent of 1/2, so a good case can be made that neither answer satisfies the conditions as Will stated them.<br /><br />I came up with 9 + 9 (base 9) [an example of the general case (for n&lt;10) n + n (base n) = 20].Joehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16670539522333119385noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-60638978865067120932015-11-12T19:58:24.134-08:002015-11-12T19:58:24.134-08:00Adding a decimal point really seems out of bounds,...Adding a decimal point really seems out of bounds, since it is not a mathematical operation. The simplest answer is: 9+9=20_9. That&#39;s 20 subscript 9, aka 20 base 9, aka 18 base 10, aka 9+9.<br />Tim Barberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03002585472893688661noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-74628607584296142852015-11-08T08:36:43.702-08:002015-11-08T08:36:43.702-08:00too late? ;-)too late? ;-)Word Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15491300694641304112noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-6300675207592373352015-11-08T08:36:27.895-08:002015-11-08T08:36:27.895-08:00too late? ;-)too late? ;-)Word Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15491300694641304112noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-20570550461836466852015-11-08T08:30:15.434-08:002015-11-08T08:30:15.434-08:00Don&#39;t make a donkey out of both of us, Bryan.Don&#39;t make a donkey out of both of us, Bryan.Paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11114786604125384958noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-125233959050695292015-11-08T07:15:54.394-08:002015-11-08T07:15:54.394-08:00I assume that it is all about the letters, and one...I assume that it is all about the letters, and one need not worry about spaces, upper/lower case, etc. Bryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11149525317349695429noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-82729752016886573692015-11-08T07:15:47.349-08:002015-11-08T07:15:47.349-08:00The way the puzzle is stated, I don&#39;t believe ...The way the puzzle is stated, I don&#39;t believe a definitive answer is even possible, and I&#39;ll stick with that assessment no matter what develops. For now, I have three possible responses, one of which I fear might be the intended answer.Paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11114786604125384958noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-7419407783849064862015-11-08T06:38:45.307-08:002015-11-08T06:38:45.307-08:00I guess now comes one of my tougher challenges; - ...I guess now comes one of my tougher challenges; - not solving the latest puzzle, but trying to figure out &quot;How the heck is <b><i>that</i></b> supposed to be a clue?&quot;<br /><br />Did Cassius Clay ever go by a certain nickname, starting with &quot;Kid ...&quot;?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-30237554375018244072015-11-08T06:12:07.195-08:002015-11-08T06:12:07.195-08:00Thanks, SuperZee. I will bump Holmes up to first p...Thanks, SuperZee. I will bump Holmes up to first place on your list.<br /><br />ecoarchitect, yes jan (or maybe Lego?) pointed us to that global warming clip from 1958 at Partial Ellipsis of the Sun.<br /><br />&quot;The City of Ember&quot; features an underground city with limited generator power so they go back to jobs like messengers instead of using cell phones or computers. The Builders (architects) are key players in this story by Jeanne DuPrau. I am halfway through it; her writing flows. . .Word Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15491300694641304112noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-38376107895047418862015-11-08T06:02:29.513-08:002015-11-08T06:02:29.513-08:00Yes! Great idea, jan.Yes! Great idea, jan.Word Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15491300694641304112noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-47601258242463753292015-11-08T05:47:18.324-08:002015-11-08T05:47:18.324-08:00If Harry Potter&#39;s magic freaked them out, I&#3...If Harry Potter&#39;s magic freaked them out, I&#39;d avoid the Douglas Adams---and put the Holmes into first place. The characters are timeless, and the stories are short enough to suit a teenager&#39;s attention span.SuperZeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08024610786525654860noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-25484228593111961222015-11-08T05:42:25.066-08:002015-11-08T05:42:25.066-08:00I never could stand this lousy actor. I never could stand this lousy actor. skydiveboyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17174073226290431753noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-84000285889165991282015-11-08T05:34:42.943-08:002015-11-08T05:34:42.943-08:00Solving this puzzle was easier than coming up with...Solving this puzzle was easier than coming up with a, hopefully not too revealing, clue - Cassius Clay.<br />SuperZeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08024610786525654860noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-26763134572235462562015-11-08T05:11:11.774-08:002015-11-08T05:11:11.774-08:00Next week&#39;s challenge: Name a famous actor — u...Next week&#39;s challenge: Name a famous actor — using both first and last name. Drop the first two letters of the first name and the last two letters of the last name. Then put a Y between what&#39;s left of the two names.<br /><br />The result, reading from left to right, will identify who might solve this challenge and play puzzle on the air with me next week.skydiveboyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17174073226290431753noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-36578394590357019422015-11-08T04:48:05.577-08:002015-11-08T04:48:05.577-08:00How about some Shel Silverstein?How about some Shel Silverstein?janhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05927176621372532733noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-19480646817588725092015-11-08T04:38:21.085-08:002015-11-08T04:38:21.085-08:00Oh, gosh. Thanks for asking. OK, I don&#39;t hav...Oh, gosh. Thanks for asking. OK, I don&#39;t have it any more, but it contained the word &quot;periodicity,&quot; referring to my runs with my dog. But it also mentioned that I had sent an e-mail to Will concerning the puzzle, and I had found it in a book by Loyd&#39;s English rival, Henry Dudeny, dating from 1907, and wondering if that predated Loyd. Will replied Loyd&#39;s was published earlier, but that which came first we may not know, because there was a lot of cross-feed in letters between the two. Anyway, something in there was a giveaway, and I apologize again.<br />---RobRobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13161465143677561592noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-47600257686554276642015-11-08T00:46:43.861-08:002015-11-08T00:46:43.861-08:00Interesting. I don&#39;t recall the film, but I re...Interesting. I don&#39;t recall the film, but I remember the actor. I thought you might be linking to On The Beach. It came out in 1959, the same year as Ben Hur. I much preferred On The Beach and I read the book right after I saw the movie. Another old movie comes to mind: Ship Of Fools. <br /><br />We don&#39;t really need to worry though. My neighbor in the house behind has been informing me for years now that global warming is not man made. It is caused by volcanic activity beneath the oceans. He can&#39;t tell me where this information comes from, but when I push hard enough he will admit he found it on the Internet, so it must be true. Of course Hillery Clinton is going to save us anyway, right? Or perhaps Dr. Ben Carson. Not that we should do anything though. Maybe we can attack a few more countries and things will improve. Doesn&#39;t war always solve things? skydiveboyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17174073226290431753noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-19377362222801886952015-11-08T00:10:51.417-08:002015-11-08T00:10:51.417-08:00Agreed, we are better at reacting than anticipatin...Agreed, we are better at reacting than anticipating; and we have largely dealt with crises after they&#39;ve become manifest. In our collective memory the solution to the crises has been on an anthropomorphic scale - think Hitler and Fascism. <br /><br />Unfortunately, as you doubtless know, our present conditions are likely to create circumstances which are beyond our capacity to react, planetary systems work on a level that we cannot control with any certainty.<br /><br />As an aside, with all the kerfuffle (not Bob) over when Exxon knew global warming was a problem, I am reminded of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lgzz-L7GFg" rel="nofollow">this movie</a> almost every elementary school kid in the US saw in the late &#39;50&#39;s through early &#39;70&#39;s.ecoarchitecthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02824602705492756728noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-40095837247177329512015-11-07T23:28:45.745-08:002015-11-07T23:28:45.745-08:00eco,
We are in perfect agreement. It isn&#39;t alw...eco,<br />We are in perfect agreement. It isn&#39;t always easy to get exactly what someone means in a blog. I have been using a similar analogy for years now. I feel like I am someone on the Titanic who realizes what the situation actually is, but I cannot get anyone else to pay any attention to what I am saying. They couldn&#39;t have saved everyone because they didn&#39;t have enough lifeboats, but many passengers refused to leave the ship at first, and then when they realized their error it was too late. Many of the lifeboats left only partially filled. As you say, the same thing is happening here now, and when you point it out to people they just look at you and smile. The stupidity of humans is amazing. They&#39;re good at making money though. As if that is what really matters.skydiveboyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17174073226290431753noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-76626222527746861432015-11-07T23:14:37.248-08:002015-11-07T23:14:37.248-08:00I didn&#39;t say Chomsky was shrill, I said he sho...I didn&#39;t say Chomsky <b><i>was</i></b> shrill, I said he <b><i>should be</i></b>. As should anyone who watches our empire implode taking civilization and many species along with it.ecoarchitecthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02824602705492756728noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-9666276309840439542015-11-07T20:41:25.799-08:002015-11-07T20:41:25.799-08:00Since we are edging ever closer to the magic 200 c...Since we are edging ever closer to the magic 200 comment mark here, might I suggest that further recommendations for books for 9th graders in Ethiopia be left <a href="http://wordwomanpartialellipsisofthesun.blogspot.com" rel="nofollow">here at Partial Ellipsis of the Sun. </a> We, at most, might break 100 comments over there.<br /><br />ecoarchitect, I like the C.S. Lewis &quot;The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe suggestion. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is new to me; I will check out her books. Thanks for asking your friends!Word Womanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15491300694641304112noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-81867801743454662232015-11-07T20:05:47.992-08:002015-11-07T20:05:47.992-08:00But Chomsky never raises his voice. Nor does he us...But Chomsky never raises his voice. Nor does he use emphasis. He simply states true facts and puts it all into place. Even when he was threatened by Buckley on TV he simply did not react at all. He knew instantly that that buffoon had destroyed himself with his bluster. His ability to recall facts is beyond my comprehension. I wish I could do that.skydiveboyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17174073226290431753noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-34407690167944950752015-11-07T19:59:07.905-08:002015-11-07T19:59:07.905-08:00Chomsky may very well be shrill (I personally don&...Chomsky may very well be shrill (I personally don&#39;t think so) but so should be anyone on the Titanic who sees the iceberg ahead.ecoarchitecthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02824602705492756728noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-35867122258070607662015-11-07T19:48:29.616-08:002015-11-07T19:48:29.616-08:00I have read Zinn online and listened to his lectur...I have read Zinn online and listened to his lectures. I was not seriously suggesting Chomsky or Joy of Sex. <br /><br />Speaking of Chomsky. A couple of years before my five years younger brother died I mentioned something about Noam Chomsky to him and he responded that, &quot;He is so shrill.&quot; I keep thinking about that. It is about the most ridiculous description I an imagine.skydiveboyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17174073226290431753noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5730391.post-67432404070498469082015-11-07T19:37:50.605-08:002015-11-07T19:37:50.605-08:00Shocked, shocked that you don&#39;t have Zinn.
...Shocked, shocked that you don&#39;t have Zinn. <br /><br />I have great respect for Chomsky, have seen him talk and have many of his tomes, but think his work is either too caught up in current events or is too complex for 9th graders, that&#39;s why I&#39;d suggest Zinn. Joy of Sex will only cause political trouble, better to stay with Our Bodies.<br /><br />Now I&#39;ve got a readache to go with my mathache.ecoarchitecthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02824602705492756728noreply@blogger.com